Associate Director, Direct Marketing & Participation – University Advancement

Associate Director, Direct Marketing & Participation – University Advancement Position Summary

The Associate Director of Direct Marketing & Participation will manage the development and execution of a sophisticated, omni-channel campaign schedule aimed to drive alumni donor participation, build lifetime loyalty, and raise maximum spendable dollars for WashU’s top Annual Fund priorities. In addition to coordinating the day-to-day aspects of our direct marketing appeals, this role will partner closely with Philanthropic Strategy partners to drive results for schools and programs and oversee faculty and staff giving.

The Associate Director reports to the Senior Director of Annual Giving Programs and will work in close collaboration and partnership with Advancement Communications, Philanthropic Strategy and other internal partners and external vendors. This Associate Director will also manage the Assistant Director who’s duties include premiums, corporate matching gift program, license plate program and Loyalty Society data hygiene.

This position is located in St. Louis, MO and the targeted hiring range for this position is $58,400 – $66,000.

• Direct Marketing Campaigns and Appeals – In close collaboration with our Advancement Communications team, plan and coordinate the daily management of a large variety and volume of direct marketing projects.
• Ensure the Direct Marketing schedule and all details are up to date in project management tool (Click Up). Track tasks, timelines, and other standard operating procedures within Click Up.
• Coordinate direct marketing projects to ensure they are successfully completed on time and within budget; manage vendor relationships and communication, as appropriate.
• Facilitate the proofing, editing, review, approval, and production processes for each appeal, as appropriate.
• Develop segmentation strategy and other data variables needed for each campaign. Identify, document, and track all testing factors. Build campaign ‘workbooks’ to organize projects based upon appeal versions and audience segmentations. Support data set finalization, merge proofing and testing, and assist in resolving any data-related issues.
• Build campaigns and source codes to ensure all appeals are able to be tracked and analyzed.
• Work closely with data analyst on data segmentation, variables, and ask strings for appeals.
• Work with other direct marketing colleagues to ensure all form links and QR codes have been requested, created and working appropriately.
• Secure final approval for all Annual Giving appeals; manage the ‘send’ process for all mass-email communications. I partnership with Advancement Communications.
• Loyalty Society – Develop and implement the strategy of the Loyalty Society program to ensure strong donor retention at all giving levels. Work closely with the Assistant Director and Data Analyst to ensure Loyalty Society data is clean.
• Facilitate appropriate strategy development processes for direct marketing campaigns and programs. Analyze historical appeal response and campaign performance reporting; seek peer benchmarking; research industry and market trends, etc.
• School/Program Liaison – Coordinate direct marketing projects to ensure they are successfully completed on time and within budget; manage vendor relationships and communication, as appropriate. Coordinate with donors and gift officers for challenge campaigns. Track tasks, timelines, and other standard operating procedures within our project management software; ensure marketing schedules and communication calendars are maintained and regularly updated.
• In collaboration with Annual Giving leadership, Advancement Communications, and our school and unit partners, support the execution of…